Everything is more expensive these days, and that includes flagship compound bows. These are the bows that major manufacturers promote as their latest and greatest\u2014and they keep creeping up in price. Five years ago, Hoyt raised eyebrows with the price of their Carbon RX-1, which had an MSRP of $1,549 and cost about $500 more than the other flagship bows at the time. This year, the average<\/em> cost of the flagship bows in our Bow Test 2023<\/a> is about $1,500. The most expensive bow in this year\u2019s test goes for $1,800\u2014that\u2019s without a rest, sight, stabilizer, or any other accessory you might want to add.\u00a0<\/p>\n So are bowhunters really getting what they pay for when they throw down for one of these top-priced bows? Or are we just buying the marketing hype\u2014like paying an extra $20 for that Nike swoosh on a t-shirt. What\u2019s the real-world performance gap between an expensive flagship bow and a budget-priced bow<\/a>, which typically cost about $400 to $700 (one third of the price of a flagship)?\u00a0<\/p>\n After running all the top flagship bows and a handful of budget bows through the same testing protocol, we have some answers. Here\u2019s how flagships and budget bows are different (or similar) when it comes to the main things that bowhunters care about: accuracy, tunability, speed, build quality, and shooting experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n Let\u2019s get this part out of the way first: The most important factor in the archery accuracy equation is you, the shooter. Great archers can shoot incredibly accurately with cheap bows and poor archers will still shoot poorly with even the highest of high-end bows. With that said, some bows are easier to shoot accurately than others (folks in the archery world call this \u201cforgiveness\u201d).\u00a0<\/p>\n In our testing, we found that flagship bows really do deliver better field accuracy than budget bows. Over the course of several days, PJ Reily of Lancaster Archery Supply and I shot five-arrow groups from 50 yards with the new flagships and new budget bows. We carefully measured every group. For this part of the testing, we shot the bows without any stabilizers, just a rest and a site.\u00a0<\/p>\n When the dust settled, flagship bow groups averaged 4 inches and budget bow groups averaged 6.65 inches.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n A difference of 2.65 inches is substantial, but the story gets more telling when you look at the most accurate bows from each category.<\/p>\n The Elite Terrain\u2019s average was tightened by one 3.25-inch group shot heroically by Reilly during a stiff crosswind. But even so, that was the single best group anyone shot with a budget bow, and it was still larger than what we were averaging with the top flagship bows.\u00a0<\/p>\n So what is it about flagship bows that makes them easier to shoot accurately? There are general characteristics that make a bow easier to shoot, like longer axel-to-axel distance. However, there are also a few more nuanced features where the flagship bows excel and the budget bows fall back.\u00a0<\/p>\n For optimal accuracy, you want a grip that makes it easy to place your hand in the same position for every shot. Both PJ and I prefer a narrow throat and flat back with rounded but distinct edges. You also want the grip angled in a way that it doesn\u2019t create torque in your hand while at full draw. A finish that feels grippy in the hand is also a nice feature. Flagship bows tend to have more of these details built into their grips. Budget bows often use a rubberized grip that feels comfortable in the hand, but doesn\u2019t promote top accuracy.<\/p>\n Bows that are well balanced at full draw are easier to hold on target, especially when shooting at longer distances in windy conditions. Flagship bows have more effort engineered into their risers and overall design to create a well-balanced bow. You can see the results from the Mantis readings we collected at the test.\u00a0The\u00a0Mantis X8<\/a>\u00a0is a small sensor that attaches to a bow\u2019s riser and sends data to the Mantis app. While we could subjectively rate if a bow held steady or wobbled like a chicken on tightrope, the Mantis readings allows us to actually show you what a bow\u2019s float pattern looks like.<\/p>\n The results I got from the flagship Elite Era showed I floated momentarily high left of the target before quickly settling on the bullseye. When shooting the budget Blackout Intrigue XST I wavered high above the target and then below it drifting both left and right. I could certainly feel the difference as well. Trying to hold the XST on target felt a bit like driving my truck down an icy road.\u00a0<\/p>\n A smooth draw cycle is an underrated element of accuracy. But consider what it feels like to draw a bow with a harsh cycle. You have to pull through a big, forceful hump and then your arm and shoulder get slammed back against the backwall. When this happens your pin wobbles all over the place. This takes extra effort to steady the bow and get on target, which makes it just a little more challenging to shoot accurately. Flagship bows, with few exceptions, tend to have more advanced cams and smoother draws.\u00a0<\/p>\n Of course, any bow needs to be tuned in order to shoot as accurately as possible, which brings us to tuning features.<\/p>\n You probably won\u2019t notice your bow\u2019s tune until you screw a broadhead onto your arrow, especially a fixed blade broadhead. That\u2019s when the difference between a bow that\u2019s easy to tune and one that\u2019s a nightmare will be most obvious. An expensive bow is going to be easy to tune for a few reasons: the risers have less flex, they have decent strings, and a lot of them come with features for easy tuning.\u00a0<\/p>\n When a bow\u2019s riser or axles flex, it adds inconsistency into your shot. That\u2019s why bow companies spend a lot of money on the best aluminum and design bows with rigid risers. You\u2019ll also see companies beefing up their axles and bearings for similar reasons. A cast magnesium riser or thin, low-quality aluminum that we see on budget bows isn\u2019t going to be nearly as stiff. Quality strings don\u2019t make a difference when you\u2019re tuning, but they make a huge difference for keeping a bow tuned. Bad strings\u2014like the ones on budget bows\u2014will continuously stretch leaving you to constantly chase your sight marks and tune. If you\u2019re serious about tuning and shooting, you should get a custom set of strings made by a reputable company because even the best factory strings aren\u2019t that great.\u00a0<\/p>\n Tuning can be done by making small adjustments to your arrow rest, but you don\u2019t want to move it a ton from true center shot. That\u2019s where adjusting your cam lean comes in. How you accomplish that adjustment will depend on your cam design. Flagships like the Elite Era, Bowtech Carbon One, and PSE Mach 34, all have easy ways of making micro adjustments that will help you get the best possible arrow flight. On the flip side, a lot of budget bow cams can\u2019t be adjusted.\u00a0<\/p>\n If you\u2019re interested in tuning, there\u2019s no comparison between a budget bow and a flagship. But, there\u2019s an overlooked component to tuning, which is you. If your grip, string pressure on your face, or release are inconsistent, then you\u2019ll never be able to tune your bow no matter the bow\u2019s price. Make sure those key parts of archery form are squared away before diving into tuning.\u00a0<\/p>\n Read Next: Best Broadheads of 2023<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\nAccuracy<\/h2>\n
Most Accurate Flagship Bows<\/h4>\n
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Most Accurate Budget bows<\/h4>\n
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Grip<\/h3>\n
Balance<\/h3>\n
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Draw Cycle<\/h3>\n
Tunability<\/h2>\n
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